Beauty behind the mask
by WinterzzWarrior
Summary: "Hiding behind a mask will just show that you are weak." "No..you just don't know anything.." Sakura looked at the backs of her team mates, leaving her after mocking her for being something she was completely not, "You don't know anything...I wear this mask to protect all of you.." That night, it wasn't the Uchiha Clan that was massacred, it was hers. Its completely different story
1. Chapter 1

Adrenaline, pumping through my veins; I could hear them, chasing after me. I could hear my ragged breaths and I can feel my heart pumping faster and faster because of the fear. Jumping over fallen branches, trees, I maneuvered around to avoid bumping into something like I have been here before. I could feel the leaves being crunched under my feet. I could hear them coming closer. I made a big mistake by looking back, and then I saw it; those piercing red eyes, looking at me. I grimaced at the thought of being captured and being dragged back to that place, just to escape again and let time repeat itself. I ran faster and faster until I knew that I was only a blur in the forest. After some time of running, I heard the sound of those chasing me grow fainter and fainter in the back. When I was positive that no one was following me, I stopped and collapsed near a river at the farthest end of the forest. I sucked in air hastily and once I could breathe properly again, I looked around to see where I was and what time of the day was it. When I looked up, I saw the faint shine of the stars, and then I knew that it was nearing night time. Looking at my reflection in the river, I can see my eyes staring back at me, my hair was matted to my face, and my clothes torn to the point that it looked like rags being held up by the still okay strap on my shoulder. What horrified me when I looked at my reflection was that there was blood splattered on my face and the remaining of my clothes. I instinctively splashed water on my face, and I stood up against my body's will to cross over to the other side of the river. I could still remember what my kind elderly relative said to me before she was…

_I pushed back my tears allowing none to fall; it had just gone all wrong. I looked around to see the deaths of all my loved ones. Screams could be heard in the sky, and the stench of blood was unmistakable. I covered my mouth so that my hiding place wouldn't be discovered._

_Kaa-san, tou-san nii-chan …where are you?_

_I thought. My hand clamped over my mouth to prevent from screaming, and letting them find me. I closed my eyes shut, and crouched down, covering my ears. Suddenly, everything became quiet, I stood up from my hiding place, and peeked out; I was hiding behind a hidden door in the house that no one but my parents and brother knew about. I looked out, and then I almost screamed when a hand was clamped over my mouth to shush me. _

"_It's me, don't scream, you'll alert them."_

_I looked up to see my brother smiling at me slightly, but it was still pained. I turned to look at him fully, and hugged him for dear life,_

"_Nii-chan…"_

_I shakily drew a breath as he stroked my hair gently; he planted a kiss on the top of my head,_

"_It's all right now, you don't have to be scared anymore, I'm here…I won't let anyone touch you."_

"…_I-I saw it, I saw everything, and it was so horrible…"_

_I sobbed, soaking his shirt that was already stained with blood. I felt him stiffen, and he clutched my form tighter against his, I continued crying softly,_

"_You saw? We told you strictly to keep your eyes closed."_

"_I'm sorry…but didn't you tell me that my curiosity would always get the best of me? And that…it would get me killed someday…"_

_I said, smirking slightly. I felt him hug me tighter,_

"_Don't say that! Please don't say that…I can't bear the thought of even losing you, so please…"_

_I was shocked, never has my brother begged for anything, and here he was begging me not to say that I would die. My eyes softened and my tears stopped, I hugged my shaking brother,_

"_Alright, I'm sorry…"_

_Just then, the door slammed open, and two…things came in, I looked in horror as my brother held me tighter against his chest; the two things were grotesque; their eyes shone white, and their body was nothing but a pure black something, covered in blood, with a few skin matted on them like they were glued on by toddlers._

"_Found pink haired girl…alert others…"_

"_Capture girl, recruit boy…"_

_I looked at them in horror. The fear triggered something in me, and suddenly, the thought of any more deaths angered me to the point that I didn't see the two things come at us. My brother carried me away, and ran towards the safe house. I couldn't hear my brother speak to me or the fact that I was torn from his arms when something hit us. I lost my train of thought as I felt the ground come in contact with my lithe form. I groaned and felt a sharp pain at my side. I looked down to see a kunai imbedded in my said, making me gasp, and cough up blood as I saw the blood spread. I didn't hear anything else as I slowly started losing consciousness. I heard my brother let out an angry shout and charge at the two beings. I saw him cut them down easily, and run towards me, carrying me gently and pressing his palm on me wound. He lifted me up in his arms and I winced. After coming in the safe house, I was immediately rushed towards somewhere, my brother in tow, watching over me closely. After that, I lost consciousness and the last thoughts in my head were that of the people trying desperately to heal me, telling me not to sleep._

I gasped, and woke up. I looked around and found that I was still in the clearing, but on the other side of the river. I looked down to see my wound slowly opening. I pushed down on my wound with my palm, and shakily stood up.

Slowly, I started walking towards the village my brother instructed me to go to. The walk towards the village through the forest was rough. I leaned against a tree to keep from falling, as my wound was opened already. The warm wetness of the blood pouring from my side awakened me and urged me to go faster. After a few hours, the sun had already set, and the moon and the stars were my only source of light, and after tripping on the ground, I fell, coughing up blood, staining the ground with its clear crimson color. I felt my eyes start to close, but I kept them open. Gripping the soil in my hand, I pushed myself of the ground, and leaning at the trees, I kept on walking. A few minutes later, I saw a distant light with my slowly failing eyesight because of the severe blood loss. Hope swelled in me as I pushed myself of the tree, and started staggering towards the light. Tripping at a branch, I collapsed face first in the ground, and upon hearing shouts, two men approached me, and one of them carried me, while the other one called for help. I started closing my eyes, and then the accelerating heartbeats of the person who carried me lulled me to darkness.

I awoke to the sound of medics trying to heal me. My vision was still blurry, and I could only see the faint outline of the people who were helping me. Though their forms were fuzzy, I managed to hear them speaking,

"…vitals are severely damaged"

"It's a miracle she's still alive…"

"This girl…that pink hair…"

"…move aside, it's the Hokage…"

"Found injured…front of the …gate"

"Make sure no one knows that…"

"…is here."

I felt a hand brush my forehead as I saw the faint outline of a kind looking elderly man. I struggled, but was stopped when he petted my hair softly,

"Shhh…sleep child, you are safe…"

His tone of voice made me feel comfortable, and when I heard distant shouting, I tried to crack one I open, but it was useless,

"…Where is she?!"

"Finally arrived…child is sleeping…"

It was distant, but I recognized that voice, I opened my eyes to see the worried blue eyes of my brother,

"…alright?!"

I managed to croak out a small call for him

"N-Nii-cha-"

"…rest…rest now, Sakura."

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked out the window and sighed in contentment; it was another peaceful morning in Konoha. The streets was lined with grocery stands like usual, while a small amount of people walked around to get things done or to buy groceries. The Hokage of the village sat himself comfortably in his seat, drinking hot tea until there was a knock at the door to his office. He let out a gruff 'come in' and a masked ANBU member bowed before him,

"I apologize for my interruption, but Haruno Sakura requests to meet you."

The Hokage smiled and waved at the ANBU to let her in,

"Let her in, I was the one that called for her."

The ANBU bowed then disappeared in a poof. Shortly after the ANBU's departure, a figure cloaked in black, wearing a white porcelain mask was at the door, the figure bowed low and said in a feminine voice,

"You called for me, Hokage-sama."

The elderly Hokage smiled and waved her over to sit with him,

"Take a seat and have some tea."

The figure nodded and stiffly sat on the cushion that was across from him,

"Is there something you need from me, Hokage-sama?"

The Hokage smiled and shook his head,

"Nothing in particular, I just wanted to know how things are going at the Academy. Did you make any progress?"

"Yes, the teacher said that I had the highest grade in the whole Academy, and he also said that we will be getting our new teams today."

Sarutobi smiled and nodded his head sipping his tea,

"Ah so, so many years have already passed since the night they found you, I could still recall you throwing your first kunai, and it unfortunately almost landed in one of our teachers legs. How many years have passed since then? I remember that you were still 4 years old when we found you."

"Nine years have already passed Hokage-sama."

The Hokage laughed and nodded. He looked at the quiet girl and almost sighed. After that incident where they found and after recovering she became quiet and aloof, opting to stay cooped up in the library to study or stay at the training grounds from morning till dusk to train. He looked at the girl, who was sipping her tea, sliding up her mask to her nose to drink. _Such a waste of a beauty like herself, _he thought. Sakura then stood up and bowed to him,

"I have to go now to prepare, thank you for inviting me, Hokage-sama."

"It's no problem, now go so you won't be late."

Sakura nodded and left through the door. Sarutobi looked at the spot where she had been sitting, and gave a sigh,

"Kami-sama, help that poor girl to fix her heart again, since she's already been through so much."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Sakura walked towards her house quietly, ignoring the odd stares and whispers she got from the crowd. After walking to the end of the village, Sakura went through the small forest separating her house from the rest of the village. She came to an open field where a lone large, Japanese styled house was sitting, surrounded by tall green plants and Cherry Blossom Trees. Entering the house, she said a small, 'tadaima' and took of her shoes. She went into the kitchen to make herself some breakfast. She saw a note stuck on the fridge, and read it out loud,

"On a mission, I'll be back tomorrow morning. Stay safe and don't let anyone in the house. Love you, Tsubasa."

Sakura sighed and took an apple from the counter, munching on it. After finishing her apple, she threw the core in the garbage can and went up to her room. Opening the shoji doors, she was greeted with the familiar scent of her room. She inhaled deeply, and opened the door to her terrace. Her spirits brightened as she was greeted by the color pink. She scanned the woods below and leaned on the railings. She could see thousand of petals dancing with the wind. It was calming, with the wind softly caressing her face, and the scent of the cherry blossoms she loved so much always greeting her when she came to her room, it was truly calming. Sighing, she pushed herself off the railing and went inside to get ready for school. She went into her bathroom and removed her cloak and mask and stood in front of the mirror. Bright emerald eyes stared back at her, contrasting with her pink hair. Sakura sighed and took a comb, running it through her hair. She then jumped into the shower and opened it, letting the warm water hit her cold skin. After a few minutes in the shower, she closed the water and wrapped her form in a big white fluffy towel. After drying herself, she walked to her closet, and chose a simple black high collard sleeve less shirt, white mid thigh length shorts, and black opened toe boots with a few white streaks running up the side of her boots. Putting her pouch at her right thigh, she put her hair in her normal high ponytail and put on her mask and cloak. She looked at her appearance and gave a small smile in approval. She looked at her clock, and saw that she had 20 minutes to go to the academy. She sighed and went out of her room and exited her house, locking it. She quietly went on her way as she looked around the forest that separated her house from the rest of the civilization of Konoha. Sakura took her time to go to the academy, since it was only a 15 minute walk from her house. When she was already at the academy, she ducked her head as she heard the students' whispers and murmurs most probably about her. Reaching her classroom, she took her normal seat at the back of the class and sat down. She gave an inaudible sigh of relief that no one came up to her and bullied her, again. She looked out the window and enjoyed the peace until she felt someone walk up to her,

"Why if it isn't little Sakura."

Sakura sighed, so _much for that moment _she thought sadly. She looked up to see sky blue eyes looking at her with disdain.

"…is there something you need from me, Yamanaka Ino-san?"

Sakura said, her voice soft and melodic to anyone in the classroom. Ino glared at her fiercely, and sneered, her hands at her hips. Sakura looked Ino over; she a pretty girl, with long platinum blonde hair and sky blue eyes.

"Yeah, why don't you take your ugly self and scram! Don't think that wearing that stupid cloak and mask of yours is going to get any attention from _my_ Sasuke-kun!"

Sakura looked at Ino with a blank look on her face, though nobody saw it.

"Umm…who's this Sasuke person again?"

Everybody in the room fell over, except for the person they were talking about and a few others. Ino quickly regained her composure and yelled at Sakura,

"What do you mean you don't know him?! Sasuke-kun is the hottest person in the whole academy, and the strongest and the smartest…"

Sakura sweat dropped at Ino, who was currently blabbing on and on about how great Sasuke was. She looked at the blonde in amusement. After Ino finished her ranting, the teacher came in the door, making Sakura sigh in relief as Ino was forced to return to her seat.

"Okay, as you all know, you will be put into your teams, so I want everyone to shut up, and no complaining."

Iruka said. Everyone in the room cheered in excitement, well except for a few others, who were just impassive, asleep or bored. Iruka cleared his throat to get everyone's attention, and as everyone quieted down, he read over the names of each teams,

"Now, for Team 7, we have Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto Uzamaki and…Sakura Haruno."

The girls in the room objected loudly, making Sakura sigh in annoyance, as well as Iruka,

"Why does she have to be in the same team as Sasuke-kun?!"

"I should be with Sasuke-kun, not that weirdo!"

"It's not fair, I should be with him!"

"All of you shut up! Since it obvious that I should be in the same team as Sasuke-kun, not all of you!"

Iruka slammed his hand on the desk,

"Will you all please quiet down; I don't want anyone of you complaining you got that? If anyone else complains, I'll give them detention for the whole week."

Iruka said annoyed, after that every girl shut up, but continued to glare at Sakura, who was just ignoring this. Iruka continued saying the names of each team members,

"Team eight will consist of Kiba Inuzuka, Shino Aburame and Hinata Hyuga. Team ten will be formed by Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi and Ino Yamanaka. For Team Guy, it will be Rock Lee, Tenten and Neji Hyuga…"After reading the names, Iruka put down the sheet of paper and said,"All of you will be meeting your new sensei at your designated meeting place, and don't be late, now, class dismissed!"Sasuke looked outside the window, getting really irritated, _he's late, that damn sensei of ours is late for about three damn hours…_Sasuke thought, closing his eyes. Sasuke could hear Naruto rant on, on how late their sensei is. Sasuke cracked one eyes open to look at both his new team mates, Naruto was still complaining that their sensei was late, and Sakura, his new mysterious girl team mate, was most probably asleep, since her head was resting on her arms on the desk. Sasuke pondered about the mysterious girl, and remembered the event that happened earlier._Flash back:__Sasuke was just seating on his seat, ignoring the squeals and calls from his fan girls. Crossing his arms over his chest and closing his eyes, he could hear how his fan girls yelled at how cool he was when he did that. After a few minutes, he could hear a commotion at the back of the class. Opening his eyes, he looked back a little to see that his most number 1 fan girl Ino, sneering at a girl clad in a black cloak and a white mask.__"__Why if it isn't little Sakura."__Sasuke could her Sakura sigh, most probably in annoyance, before asking._

_"…is there something you need from me, Yamanaka Ino-san?"_

_He saw Ino sneer and put her hands on her hips, trying to look intimidating, _

_"Yeah, why don't you take your ugly self and scram! Don't think that wearing that stupid cloak and mask of yours is going to get any attention from my Sasuke-kun!"_

_Sakura looked at her for the moment before replying, _

_"Umm…who's this Sasuke person again?"_

_Sasuke almost fell over when she said that, How could she not know me? Sasuke thought, looking at the girl with a blank look on the outside, but inside, his jaw dropped. Ino snapped out of her stupor and looked at the girl as if she was crazy,_

_"What do you mean you don't know him?! Sasuke-kun is the hottest person in the whole academy, and the strongest and the smartest…"_

_Sasuke looked at Ino annoyed that she kept on ranting on how cool, smart, strong and hot he was; though Sasuke did inwardly smirked haughtily to himself. After then, the teacher came in, and Ino was forced to return to her seat. Sasuke looked at Sakura at the corner of his eye and smirked, the girl has guts for not knowing who I am…she's interesting, and I always did love a challenge. Sasuke thought, remembering her name, Sakura huh? _

**_End of Flash back_**

As he thought this, Naruto suddenly stood up and walked towards the front of the classroom with a mischievous grin on his face,

"What are you doing, dobe?

Naruto glared at him and yelled out,

"I'm not a dobe, teme! And if you want to know, I'm going to give that sensei of ours a little punishment for coming so late!"

Naruto said, snickering. Sasuke rolled his eyes, and at the corner of his eyes, he saw Sakura slowly waking up from her slumber because of Naruto's ranting to look at the blonde. Naruto got a chalk eraser and dragged a chair towards the door. He then stood on the chair and opening the door slightly, he placed the eraser on top of the slightly ajar door.

"Pfft, like a jounin is ever going to fall for such a simple booby trap."

I muttered under my breath. After Naruto dragged back the chair to its original place, he sat back on his seat and waited. After a few minutes of waiting, the trio heard the door creak slightly and looked up. Suddenly, all there was a soft 'thud' and a cloud of chalk dust. There was silence until Naruto was laughing his ass off, holding his stomach as he rolled on the ground. Sasuke looked at their sensei and scoffed, _this is our sensei?_

"Bwuhahahah, you fell for it!"

Their sensei rubbed his chin for a moment and deadpanned,

"My first impression on you guys is that…I don't like you!"

Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura sweat dropped.

**Time skip**

"So let's start off with introductions."

"Well what do you want to know, sensei?"

Naruto asked, their sensei shrugged his shoulders,

"Well how about your likes, dislikes, dreams, hobbies. You know, stuff like that."

Naruto said,

"Well, how about you introduce yourself first, sensei!"

The man rubbed the back of his neck and started,

"Okay. My name's Hatake Kakashi. I have no desire to tell you my likes and dislikes. My dreams? Hmm…let's see. I have a lot of hobbies…"

The trio sweat dropped,

"So…he only told us his name."

Sasuke said.

"Now then, since I'm done why don't you guys introduce yourselves. Starting from left to right."

Since Naruto was on the right, he grinned,

"My name's Naruto Uzamaki! I love ramen, I don't like the 3 minute waiting time for the ramen to cook. My dream is to be the Hokage, so that everyone will finally respect me! My hobbies are pulling pranks on others!"

Kakashi looked at Naruto, _Hmm, he's grown well_.

"Okay next."

Sasuke sighed and started introducing himself,

"My name is Sasuke Uchiha; I don't like a lot of things, especially fan girls. I like tomatoes and training. My dream is to surpass my brother and my hobbies are training."

Kakashi looked at Sasuke, his eyes narrowed, _so this is the Uchiha kid, interesting…Surpassing his_ _brother eh?_ Kakashi thought. His gaze shifted to the quiet girl in his team.

"Next."

Sakura looked up, then her gaze shifted to the face of her teacher,

"My name is Sakura Haruno, I like…training and reading, I guess? I dislike a lot of things; my dream is…what is my dream? I don't know…My hobbies are training and …"

Kakashi looked at his student with slight surprise, _Haruno? Why does that name seem so familiar? And shouldn't girls at this age be more interested in boys? _

Kakashi clapped his hands, getting his students attention,

"So since that's done, will start tomorrow off with a survival test."

Naruto's hand shot up,

"But we already trained so much back at the academy!"

Kakashi snickered a little,

"Well, for this training, I'm going to be your opponent. And you should know, that only 9 genin pass out of all the other graduates."

Naruto's jaw dropped while Sakura and Sasuke remained impassive,

"What! But we already passed right?!"

Kakashi shrugged his shoulders,

"That was only to choose who had the possibility to become genin."

Naruto looked at the ground with a nervous expression, his hands clenched. Sakura looked at her sensei, her eyes slightly narrowed, while Sasuke glared at the ground. Kakashi looked at his students and spoke to break the tension rising in the atmosphere

"Yeah, so anyway don't eat tomorrow or you'll throw up. The directions are on this print outs. So I guess that's all. You are all dismissed, oh, and don't be late."

With that, Kakashi disappeared with a poof and a cloud of smoke. The three just sat there, looking at where their sensei was just standing. After a few minutes, Sasuke stood up and walked towards the door.

"C'mon dobe, mom's going to flip when we get back late."

Sasuke said, looking at Naruto. Naruto stood, and walked towards Sasuke. Seeming to forget something, Naruto turned to look at their Sakura, who was just sitting there, looking at the sky.

"C'mon dobe or I'll leave you behind."

Sasuke said, irritated. Naruto scratched the back of his neck,

"But, what about Sakura-chan?"

Sasuke glared at him, before looking at the girl,

"Tch, just leave her, now let's go!"

Naruto hesitated before following Sasuke. He took one last look at Sakura before closing the door behind him, leaving Sakura alone.

Sakura looked at the sky, then sighed when her team mates left her. Standing up, she dusted off her clothes, and leaned against the railing. She looked at the town below, and closing her eyes, she pushed herself off the railings to head towards the door. Closing the door, she was unaware of the dark eyes that followed her moves before she closed the door.

The figure observing Sakura sighed, jumped when he heard someone speak,

"Kakashi! It seems that this batch of students is going to be wonderful youths!"

Kakashi looked over to find Maito Guy, his childhood friend, standing with yet another weird pose,

"Guy, I would appreciate it if you didn't scare me like that."

Guy looked at Kakashi, then to where he was looking at. He grinned,

"It seems that this batch finally caught your attention, so who're the lucky youthful students that caught your attention?"

Kakashi sighed and walked over to where Guy was standing. He walked past him, and stopped when he was behind the other teacher,

"They're all interesting; I'm just curios on how long they'll last tomorrow."

Kakashi said, walking away from Guy while waving his hand. Guy looked at Kakashi before, smiling and jumping off, screaming about 'wonderful youthful students of his'.


End file.
